Darsant Avat

Bandomeer

Sometimes, Obi-Wan felt like he went through years without being aware of it all. Things would happen around him, the galaxy would change, and he just went with the flow for the most part. There would be some instances, though, when he would stop and wonder how in the galaxy he got to where he was. It felt he was pulled along by some entity, and he just followed, but he had no idea where he was going.

The years passed with little of note. Master Qui-Gon spent much of his time researching something, and on occasion Obi-Wan would catch something about 'Darsant Avat'. He looked it up himself, but the descriptions were confusing, something about how different sides of the Force would fight each other, and it really did not seem to have anything to do with…well, anything.

In the meantime, Reeft was accepted by a master, as was Siri, and as they all approached their thirteenth birthdays, they watched as one by one their fellow younglings being shipped away to the various Corps. The main talk, however, was Bruck Chun.

"They say he'll be sent to Agri-Corps," Said Bant, "It's going to be strange without him."

"We all saw this coming." Garen had forgiven Obi-Wan a long time ago, and was preoccupied with all the missions he and his master kept getting sent on. "No one would take someone like Chun as a padawan. Where else would he go? Look at Aalto." Aalto, incidentally, had already been sent to the engineering corps about a year ago.

"We did," Bant agreed, "But still, it will be odd, not having him in these halls."

"Is it strange that I feel kind of bad for him?" Obi-Wan asked, "I mean, back when Master Qui-Gon took me as his apprentice…I don't know if Bruck and I were much different then. I actually still don't know why he chose me so early."

"Tell me about it," Garen teased, "What on earth could a Jedi Master like that have seen in you? Oafy-Wan."

Obi-Wan made a face at him. "Still, sometimes I wonder if it hadn't been me buried under there, but Bruck. Then he'd be the one Master Qui-Gon chose."

"No!" Bant exclaimed, "You can't think that! He was a complete bully from the start. Master Jinn would never have liked him."

Obi-Wan shrugged.

Later that day, Master Qui-Gon told Obi-Wan a bit of news that had the boy feeling anxious.

"We're being sent to Bandomeer to investigate the mining efforts," The Jedi said, "There seems to be some criminal activity and fraud. I'm going to leave you here to attend classes while I go."

"Why?" Obi-Wan asked. He had a real lightsaber if things got dangerous and this sounded simple enough. "Can't I come with you?"

"I have a feeling it will be very dangerous, Padawan," Qui-Gon reached out and patted him on the back of the head, "Don't worry about it. Just attend class, be a good student, and I will try to return as quickly as possible."

OoO

"Why do you think there's going to be an issue?" Shaak Ti asked, "The initiate, Bruck Chun, is being sent on the same transport as you."

"It's probably not a wise decision," Qui-Gon insisted.

"Well we already made plans," Said the Togrutian master, "It's just a transport, Qui-Gon. It's no less dangerous to send him on another transport—the Corps is on Bandomeer, it's not like we can send him anywhere else."

"You shouldn't send him with a transport filled with Arconans and Offworlders. For crying out loud, he's been here as a child, the least we can do is send him with a special escort of our own. This is ridiculous. It's not like we lack for our own ships. These children are heartbroken." Never mind that Bruck Chun had bullied his own padawan, the boy was still a youngling, and the adults should be responsible for him. "Designate a special transport for him. He's not the only one who hasn't been chosen."

"They're all going to different places, Qui-Gon. He's the only one going to Agri-Corps. It makes no sense to do a whole trip—"

"How in the galaxy does it not make sense? Our own ship, our own flying schedule, our own defenses, rather than toss him with a bunch of people we don't know. Can you guarantee that the passengers on the vessel he's scheduled on wouldn't try to harm a Jedi child who's left all by himself?"

"Well that's where you come in, isn't it?"

"This is ridiculous," Qui-Gon scowled.

"You're letting your own feelings for your own padawan cloud your judgment," Shaak Ti said gently, and Qui-Gon realized that the Order did not really care for its initiates the way he cared about Obi-Wan. It figured, really.

"These parents give their children to us," He said, struggling to release his fury at the injustice of it all, "In the hopes that their children would grow up to do good in the galaxy. We raise these younglings so that it's the only lifestyle they know, and when they don't fit our particular code or the tastes of particular potential masters, we toss them aside without any regard for their future. What if that vessel gets attacked by pirates? You realize that it's a larger target?"

"You're being sent on the same vessel, Qui-Gon."

"Fat lot of good that will do," He folded his arms, "But in any case, I will not take Obi-Wan with me. This mission feels," He shook his head, "Perhaps it's more for Chun's sake than for my padawan. Those two don't get along. Chun hardly needs a reminder of how Obi-Wan succeeded where he had failed. I will have you know, however, I find all of this distasteful. I guess it's too late for Bruck Chun, but if we have any more temple rejects my two credits is that we should treat them less like trash and more like children who are losing the only family they've known."

"The Jedi Order was never a family, Qui-Gon," Shaak Ti said quietly, "And neither are you Kenobi's father. It would do you good to remember that."

"I never pretended I was," Qui-Gon said in exasperation, "And you're missing the point." However, even he was not audacious enough to change the view of the entire order. "I'll see you when I get back, Shaak Ti."

OoO

"Sometimes I think Master Qui-Gon doesn't really believe in me," Obi-Wan confessed to a very thirsty Kit, who was downing water from a ten-gallon bottle directly. He would have went to Tahl or Authsola, but both women were off on their own missions, as were Feemor and his padawan. "Anytime he sees anything, I don't see anything, so I don't know what he knows, but it's like if he thinks there's going to be a lightsaber battle involved, he doesn't want me there."

"Ah!" Kit set the bottle down with the Force, wiping his mouth. "Your master's pretty protective, this is true. Far more than the others. You know how he was when he first got you? He wouldn't even let you stay at the apartment by yourself. Remember how he kept sending you to the créche, or to Feemor or Tahl or Authsola?"

"You're trying to distract me," Obi-Wan sighed, "I don't get it, I mean, I've been his padawan for three years and I'm now the age most initiates are getting worried. I've had a real lightsaber for two years and he always says I'm progressing really well, but then he turns around and leaves me behind. If he keeps doing this, everyone else will seriously start having more experience than me when it comes to the field."

"Have you talked to him about your feelings, Obi?"

"I don't know how to say," Obi-Wan sighed again.

"You could tell him like you just told me."

"I suppose. I guess part of it is that I don't really want to know the answer. I mean, what if he is, what can I do? I'm trying my best already," He felt the padawan braid, "And I guess I should be thankful, I mean, I hate the medcenter, and I hate the healing wing. I also have a lot of non-Jedi friends."

Kit snorted at this.

"Well at least Bail," Obi-Wan conceded, since he was not sure he could call everyone he knew a friend. "But part of a Jedi Knight's job is to defend, and right now I'm getting defended more than doing the defending."

"You're still a child," The Nautolan hoisted the ten-gallons with the help of the Force with the intention of bringing it to his rooms. "You became a padawan really early, and you've been a padawan for a while. It's true that other padawans are charging into blasterfire by the time they spent three years with their masters, but they also tend to be about three years older than you. Look at you. You're still short, and your voice still sounds like a human female."

"…"

"I've seen enough of my human friends to know," Kit went on, "When you reach that growth spurt, all that Force sensitivity is not going to help you deal with how you no longer know where your body begins and ends. And then your voice goes through that awkward period where it does not really sound like a voice at all. You also start growing hair on your faces. The males, at least."

"…So you think I'm alright?"

"Of course you're alright."

OoO

"The shadows fail at their jobs," Qui-Gon complained to the hologram of a very unhappy Mace Windu, "It's Xanatos. He's the one behind this all." It was such a good thing he had followed his impulse to leave his padawan behind. "I need backup for this."

"Bandomeer? What on earth does he want with Bandomeer?" Mace rubbed his face. "Alright. I'm coming, I'll see if I can get Shaak Ti as well. You hang in there and keep an eye on things."

Qui-Gon nodded. "Jinn out." He shut the connection and rubbed his face as well. The situation regarding Bandomeer had been rocky from the start. First the ship he was on wound up delivering two opposing factions, the rather useless Arconans and unimpressive Offworlders. Bruck Chun ended up being equally useless, stubbornly following his own impulses instead of listening to Qui-Gon's counsel and causing the situation to erupt. Then they got attacked by Togrutian pirates, which was always fun, and gave Qui-Gon an injury he really could do without. They were then stranded on a planet that was distinctly not Bandomeer with creatures that were distinctly not Bandomeerian. Honestly, having Obi-Wan around probably would have made everything a lot easier, but then there came the issue of Xanatos, who had ever so kindly planted explosives in the mines after kidnapping Bruck Chun, so that was out.

Bandomeer? Really? What's on Bandomeer?

He hurried out afterwards.

Clat'Ha, a young human woman who was Arcona Harvest's chief operations manager, was waiting out in the hall, looking nervous.

"What do we do?" She asked.

"Locate the bombs," He told her, "I'll go handle Du Crion." He turned around and swore inwardly at the sight of his R2 unit. "We must have gotten a whole batch of lemons, or one of that Hutt's people sabotaged my droid. Look, I cannot find Du Crion and disarm all the explosives at the same time. You need to get your people to help me."

"That's not a problem, Master Jedi," Clat'Ha said willingly, "But how do we find the explosives?"

Qui-Gon released his frustration into the Force. Honestly, he had no idea what people did when they were not able to do that. Stupid R2 units… "You'll have to do it the long way. I need to chase after Bruck Chun." And Du Crion. Sith take it. He sped past. He should have known Bruck Chun would turn out to make his life difficult, considering how the boy was determined to keep his padawan miserable. Life liked patterns like those.

OoO

"Are you alright, Padawan?"

Obi-Wan looked up from where he had been staring into space instead of meditating. Master Sifo-Dyas was standing a cautious distance away, but he looked genuinely concerned.

For some reason, Master Qui-Gon did not like Master Sifo-Dyas very much, which made Obi-Wan slightly nervous around the esteemed Jedi. Still, he sensed no threat, and this was the Room of a Thousand Fountains. Other masters were close by, and it was not like a fellow Jedi…

Well, maybe he should not think that. Master Dooku had been very creepy, and just thinking about him made Obi-Wan long to scrub the part of his face the elderly Jedi had touched.

"I don't know," He admitted.

"Your master is on a mission?"

He nodded.

"I am sure he will be back soon."

"It's not that."

"May I sit?"

Obi-Wan blinked rapidly and scooted over to allow the master to sit.

"What troubles you, young one?"

Obi-Wan did not reply immediately. "Just that he didn't bring me."

"Master Jinn cares about you very much."

"I know." Perhaps more than he should. "I just feel like…he doesn't believe in me." Kit's reassurances were not particularly good, especially since the Nautolan was preoccupied with getting rehydrated. "He doesn't let me help him, or prove myself. I don't know. I'm probably being silly."

"You're being very silly," Master Sifo-Dyas said kindly, and his face was soft. "There are things your master does not wish to burden you with, and so I shall keep my silence, but I will tell you that you are destined for great things."

Obi-Wan looked up. Master Sifo-Dyas was strong in the Unifying Force, like Obi-Wan, supposedly, even though Obi-Wan did not really think he was too strong. It was hard to tell, when half of his visions go to his master instead of him.

"What sort of great things?" He asked astutely. "Great does not mean good."

"Do you feel you are capable of bad things, Padawan?"

Obi-Wan looked away. "I don't know. I think we all are. It's what we're taught."

"True."

Obi-Wan turned to him. "Master Sifo-Dyas, when you were a padawan…were you left behind a lot?"

"In the early years, I was, in fact." The older man clasped his hands together. "Part of it was because I was too young. Another reason was that some of the missions my master was assigned had been too sensitive. Sending a student along would have soured relations, given the impression that the Jedi Order did not take the issue seriously. As I got older, despite being a padawan still, I had the look of an adult, even if I was young, and I could function more as my master's equal in a public setting."

"Kit did make fun of me for being short," Obi-Wan mused.

"You are tall for your age, are you not?"

"Well I doubt Kit keeps track of that, since I'm human and he's a Nautolan."

"Kit Fisto?" There was more humor in the master's voice now. "You refer to him as 'Kit'?"

Obi-Wan blinked, briefly confused, before realizing that normally he should have referred to Kit as 'Knight Fisto'. "I…yes. I refer to him as 'Kit'. He calls me Obi." He shrugged.

"I see."

They sat for a while in silence, with Obi-Wan wondering what the Jedi Master wanted to do, exactly. It was a bit awkward to sit there and say nothing, but he had no idea what to say, and Master Sifo-Dyas did not offer any topics.

"Padawan Kenobi," The elder Jedi said at last, "You will face your share of trials in due time. This is inevitable. Allow your master the indulgence of delaying that for as long as possible. Qui-Gon Jinn is a wise man. He has trained two knights already, before he took you. If he had truly believed you were incapable of carrying the mantle of a knight, it would have been kinder to send you from the order to one of the Corps, where you would not draw attention nor be expected to wade at the front lines of conflict. Every day, he lives with the knowledge that you might one day be expected to die, to suffer, to grieve for the sake of the galaxy. The universe is filled with things no single Jedi can comprehend, but those like your master are more familiar with what horrors may lie in the shadow. You are precious to Master Jinn, but he cannot always protect you. Allow him to do so while he still can."

"He is precious to me too," Obi-Wan managed not to bite his lower lip at the last second.

Master Sifo-Dyas' eyes softened. "And that is the best gift he could ever ask. Patience, young one. You are far too hasty. There is a reason for everything, and your destiny will be revealed in due time."

Obi-Wan closed his eyes and sighed again. When he opened them to look up, Master Sifo-Dyas had left.

OoO

Qui-Gon almost wished he could claim that he was not expecting Bruck Chun to accept Xanatos' offer of alliance, but he sadly was not. The boy was awfully young, and it was just awful to look at him, this child who once upon a time must have been innocent and pure, perhaps as much as his Obi-Wan, but somehow…

"I have no chance," Said the boy, lightsaber held at the ready, "The Order does not want me. Why should I help its members?"

In contrast to Obi-Wan's bright presence, Chun's aura was grey and dim, flickers of rage dancing and weaving in and out like serpents.

"Would you slay a child, Jedi Master?" The Sith taunted from behind the boy, "You and your Jedi ways!"

"Initiate Chun," Qui-Gon ignored Xanatos to turn to the boy, praying to the Force that there was enough time, "Being a Jedi is not all there is."

The boy let out a bitter laugh, and he sounded old, beyond his years. "He and I, we use to get into trouble about the same. Both had anger issues, both lost our tempers too easily. Then you came along, and you picked him, and all of the sudden whenever he did anything un-Jedi, everyone thought he was 'so adorable', 'so precious', the Senators fawned over him, ambassadors, governors, but me, when I do something un-Jedi, people just frown and shake their heads. Being a Jedi is not all there is, but it's all I know, and I train hard, I study hard, but all people focus on is Kenobi." Dark jealousy swirled within the child, and with it a hate too profound for a boy of thirteen years. "Anything I do right, people ignore, because they all side with Kenobi against me. Anything I do wrong, just affirms what they always thought about me. Even Master Yoda gave up on me, long before I realized, before I was smart enough to give up myself. Being a Jedi is not all there is, so I don't want to be a Jedi. I don't care for Jedi. I'll go where I am appreciated, and I hope the darkness does take that cursed Kenobi, because it would be just delicious! That the star of the order, the one everyone fawned over and twittered, ends up being evil!"

The boy struck, which Qui-Gon blocked easily. He Force-pushed the child back and yanked the lightsaber from the boy's hands and turned his attention to Xanatos.

"A little history there, eh?" The Sith's eyes glowed bright yellow in the shadows as their lightsabers clashed and pressed against each other, "I must admit, little Padawan Kenobi was a delight, but did your order ever consider his effect on others? To boost one to the top requires stepping on many others. It is the way of business, it is the way of politics, it is the way of the Force, and in that regard, you Jedi are no better than Sith. We all do what we must to climb; the only difference is you Jedi lie about it, pretend you are above it all, hypocritically preaching justice and virtue when you steal children from their parents to raise them to one lifestyle, only to toss them aside like garbage when they did not fulfill all of your requirements."

The Force flowed through Qui-Gon, directing his blade, enhancing his reflexes and his focus. He ignored Xanatos' taunts. Perhaps later, if he survived this battle, he could muse over what the Sith said, but not at the moment. Now was not the time for doubt. Bruck Chun tried to interfere, but Qui-Gon easily pressed him to the side where he would not harm himself.

"You prey on a child in his weakest moment," Said Qui-Gon to the Sith, "Though I am not surprised. Your kind are only strong enough to take advantage of those in their weakest moments."

"And who is responsible for that, eh?" Xanatos sneered, "Would we be around to prey on the weak, if the light were strong enough to buffer all?"

"Perhaps not," Qui-Gon raised his blade, "But you are only as strong as the weakest of us."

"Keep thinking that!" Xanatos laughed, "Keep thinking that, and perhaps you might keep thinking that to your last breath!"

For all his attitude, however, as the duel dragged on, it became apparent that Xanatos was no match for a master like Qui-Gon Jinn. The Sith swirled back in a flurry of robes and there was a resounding clang as a heavy metal door slammed shut between him and the Jedi.

Bruck Chun scrambled, but it was too late. He pounded on the door, the little one's aura bright with terror.

"Oh by the way," Said Xanatos from the other side, "There's a bomb in the room with you, just so you know. Have fun in there. Or not." He cackled, and then there was silence.